First enzymatically recycled cosmetics bottle wins inaugural Pioneer Awards

Enzymatic recycling pioneer Carbios and L'Oréal, the world’s leading personal care company, have been named the winners of the inaugural Pioneer Awards in the Industry category, presented by the Solar Impulse Foundation at the first World Alliance Summit.

Carbios received the honour for its proprietary enzymatic PET recycling solution; L’Oreal was recognised for creating the first cosmetics bottle prototype using this technology.

Carbios and L'Oréal have been working together since 2017, when the companies created a consortium to improve the recyclability and circularity of PET packaging. This consortium was later, in 2019, joined by Nestlé Waters, PepsiCo and Suntory Beverage & Food Europe, resulting in the production of the world's first enzymatically recycled PET packaging in 2021.

“The success of our industrialisation depends in part on our ability to forge strategic partnerships, such as the close collaboration we have built up with L'Oréal over the last few years,” said Emmanuel Ladent, CEO of Carbios.

Bertrand Piccard, serial explorer, psychiatrist, clean technology pioneer, Initiator and Chairman of the Solar Impulse Foundation, congratulated the winners of the inaugural Pioneer Awards.

“In 2019, Carbios was among the first solutions to be labelled "Efficient Solutions" by the Solar Impulse Foundation. I'm excited to see how it has become a real-world solution,” he said. “Thanks to this revolutionary, environmentally-friendly packaging, this winning solution has a significant impact, and its replicability in different markets and applications will guarantee its impact on a global scale."

According to recent life-cycle analyses, the technology's environmental benefits are considerable. These analyses demonstrate a 57% reduction in CO2 emissions compared with the production of virgin plastic, while compared with conventional recycling, enzymatic recycling is four times more circular (calculated according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's Material Circularity Indicator).  Thanks to its highly selective enzyme, optimised for efficient PET degradation, Carbios' depolymerisation process can process all types of PET waste, including coloured, multilayer or textile waste that cannot be recycled using current technologies. The monomers derived from the process, PTA and MEG, can be repolymerised into recycled PET products of virgin quality that are suitable for food contact.

Carbios is currently constructing the world's first PET biorecycling plant, scheduled to be commissioned in 2025. The company is also rolling out its technology internationally through licencing agreements.